Xi3: More PISTON SteamBox Details On Monday

Remember when Xi3 was talking about Steam-focused PC hardware earlier this year? Well the small form factor PC maker seems to be at it again.

From the Xi3 press release:

This coming Monday, September 30, 2013, Xi3 Corporation will reveal additional information about its forthcoming PISTON Console at 10 a.m. (PDT).
As a preface to this announcement, Xi3 has prominently highlighted on its Website a gray scale illustration featuring an outline of the iconic shape of the PISTON Console with an equals sign floating in the middle of the outline. Above the PISTON Silhouette is a headline that reads, “The wait is over” with the date 09.30.13 displayed below the image. Given your interest in Xi3 / PISTON in the past, I thought you’d want to know.

The PISTON PC is already available for pre-order, but not much is known about the Small Form Factor (SFF) PC besides its price and a few meager hardware details. We don’t even know what kind of CPU and GPU this SFF PC has yet, despite the $999 pricetag.

The announcement on Monday could reveal detailed hardware specs, talk about models with SteamOS already installed (perhaps a Windows/SteamOS dual-boot configuration?), and (fingers crossed) a lower entry price than the established $999 pricetag. There’s even a remote chance that Xi3 is producing the beta hardware on Valve’s behalf, especially with all the Xi3-Valve investment chatter from earlier this year.

There’s no doubt that other OEMs will announce their own SteamBox models soon — I would expect announcements from the like of Asus, MSi, Alienware, and Zotac — but it looks like Xi3 will be first to market with SteamOS-powered hardware.

Sorry for another “announcement of an announcement,” but this Steam hardware talk is simply too exciting to ignore. Do you feel the same way? Would you buy a PISTON PC at $999? At $499? What’s your price? Let us know in the comments below.